I still like her writing style, but it felt a bit disjointed. This was my first Rainbow Rowell and I was initially very captivated by her writing and character dynamics.
I was all-in on the first third of this book and found myself very invested in the relationship between Shiloh and Cary, both past and present. Unfortunately, the timeline jumps really bogged down the latter part of this book for me. There were several times I had no idea where we were in Shiloh and Cary's lives and couldn't wrap my head around what info they knew, what had already happened, where they were in their relationship and with others in their lives.
I also felt like Cary is a bit underdeveloped compared to Shiloh, who I honestly could have used a little bit less of she's a complex and interesting character, but she is a LOT. Some of the passages were very moving and I'm overall impressed with Rowell's writing. I stand by what I've said before that second chance romance is one of the most difficult tropes to write, and this one gets a lot of the emotions right despite its logistical flaws.
I liked the last part of the book. The first part, when the characters were fumbling with their feelings for each other, was painful, but it was beautiful once they understood that they wanted to be together.
Rainbow Rowell is one of my favorite authors so when I saw the opportunity to read one of her books early I jumped at the opportunity. Rowell is a master when it comes to intellectual romance. Her greatest gift is bringing the readers inside the minds of her characters and making you like them as a person even if the traits the characters have themselves is not ones you like. An enthralling read.
